The New Mountain West: What’s Left, What’s Next, and Who Leads Now
Shortly before the 2024 football season kicked off, the Mountain West Conference was gutted. Not slowly. Not strategically. Just gutted.
Five of the league’s most valuable members — Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Utah State — announced their departures for the newly restructured Pac-12. It didn’t just shift the power balance in the West. It torched it. Nearly every major football brand, tournament-viable basketball program, and media rights asset the Mountain West had built over two decades was walking out the door. And fast.
What came next was a frantic scramble. Two Western leagues (the new-look Pac-12 and the now-splintered Mountain West) were both trying to rebuild and survive in the same footprint. Both needed bodies. Both needed TV money. Both needed leverage. And neither had time on its side.
Rebuilding from What Was Left
To its credit, the Mountain West moved quickly — if imperfectly. It filled its roster with the best available schools that were willing to join. That list ended up being:
Hawai‘i, now a full member after years as football-only
Northern Illinois, football-only
UC Davis, everything except football
Grand Canyon University, non-football
UTEP, full member
This wasn’t a power play. This was survival. These schools weren’t upgrades — not in branding, not in recruiting, not in TV value. But they gave the Mountain West enough members to maintain structure, bowl affiliations, and tournament access. That was the priority.
And to be clear, this version of the Mountain West isn’t competing with what it used to be. It’s competing with irrelevance. Holding the line is the goal now.
Football: New Faces, Lower Ceiling
The Mountain West has always been a football-first league. That’s where the money is. That’s where playoff access lives. And that’s where the real damage was done.
Of the five departing schools, Boise State, Fresno State, and San Diego State accounted for nearly every conference title over the past decade. Boise alone just delivered the league’s first College Football Playoff appearance in 2024. With them gone — and with Utah State and CSU also out — the Mountain West’s championship pedigree has vanished.
The only remaining football champ is San José State, from the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
Now, the football identity of the league rests on UNLV and Air Force — two programs trending up but not yet battle-tested as flagship brands. UNLV has the infrastructure, coaching staff, and recent success to carry weight. Air Force remains one of the most consistent and disciplined programs in the country. But it’s a major drop from what the conference had.
The new additions don’t move the needle much. UTEP brings a regional rivalry for New Mexico and modest upside. Northern Illinois adds stability — and an odd new Midwest footprint — but won’t draw national eyes. They’re decent programs, but they’re not replacing Boise or Fresno.
The result: a more competitive race, sure — but one with a lower ceiling.
Basketball: Still Solid, Just Not Spectacular
Men’s basketball is where the Mountain West had quietly become elite. In 2024, it sent five teams to the NCAA Tournament. San Diego State was just a season removed from playing in the national championship. Colorado State and Utah State were annual contenders. Boise’s defense was one of the best in the country.
Now? All four are leaving.
But the league isn’t dead in basketball. New Mexico becomes the new anchor — and they’ve got the fan base, history, and talent to pull it off. UNLV and Nevada remain relevant, both with recent postseason hopes and strong recruiting.
The real wildcard is Grand Canyon, which joins as a non-football member but brings big-time basketball investment and recent tournament appearances. Add in Hawai‘i, which has flirted with Big West success, and the bones of a multi-bid league are still here.
The future of MWC hoops will look more like the WCC or A-10 than the Big East-lite era we just saw. It’s a downgrade, yes. But not a collapse.
Media, Money, and Legal Wildcards
This is the part that hasn’t settled yet.
There’s no new media deal announced. And without Boise or SDSU, the league has far less to negotiate with. Whatever deal gets signed likely brings only modest increases — maybe a small bump to cover inflation, but no major revenue spike.
What does matter? The ongoing lawsuits over exit fees and poaching penalties, which could total more than $140 million. That’s a critical swing point. If the Mountain West recovers even half that money, it could stabilize operations and even fund future expansion. If not? It’ll be scrambling again within two years.
The league’s Grant of Rights agreement, finalized in 2024, is what saved it from outright implosion. It locked in members through penalties and revenue shares. UNLV and Air Force are reportedly receiving the largest payouts, signaling their new roles as conference flagships — and as schools the league cannot afford to lose.
Geography: From Mountain to Patchwork
Geographically, this league barely resembles the compact western footprint it started with.
California’s presence is now limited to the north — no more SoCal.
The mountain corridor shrunk with the exits of Boise, CSU, and Utah State.
Hawai‘i and NIU are now full-fledged outliers.
The Southwest (Las Vegas, El Paso, Albuquerque, Phoenix) is the new anchor.
It’s still regional in some ways. But make no mistake: the Mountain West now spans four time zones, two oceans, and one very confused travel map.
Rivalries and What Remains
Some good news: rivalries still exist.
The Silver State Series (UNLV–Nevada) remains intact and might even gain visibility.
New Mexico vs. UTEP returns as a geographic and cultural rivalry.
Air Force vs. UNLV, and San José State vs. Hawai‘i, could become more meaningful.
Losing SDSU–Fresno, Boise–USU, and CSU–WYO as conference games hurts, but not everything vanished. The league will need to manufacture more tension in its matchups to maintain relevance.
Stability: For Now, but Don’t Get Comfortable
The Mountain West, as it currently stands, is stable. But it’s not secure.
If the Big 12 or Pac-12 expands again, UNLV and Air Force are the most obvious targets. Their institutional fit, recent athletic success, and media value make them top picks.
Most of the other schools — like Wyoming, New Mexico, San José State — aren’t getting poached. Not because they’re bad. Just because they’re not the kind of brands realignment sharks are chasing.
That means the Mountain West is safe in the short term, but only because the bigger fish aren’t biting yet.
Final Thought: The Mountain West Is Still Alive — But It's Not the Same
Let’s be honest: this is a downgraded conference. You don’t lose Boise, SDSU, Fresno, and Utah State and expect to break even. You survive. You adapt. You hope your new flagship schools — UNLV, Air Force, New Mexico, and Grand Canyon — can keep the product credible.
This is no longer the best mid-major in football. It’s not the sixth-best league in basketball. But it’s still a league — and in 2026, that counts for something.
Now we find out what survival actually looks like.
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